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CEGL001451 Artemisia pedatifida / Pascopyrum smithii Shrubland
Type Concept Sentence: No Data Available
Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Birdfoot Sagebrush / Western Wheatgrass Shrubland
Colloquial Name: No Data Available
Hierarchy Level: Association
Type Concept: This vegetation type has been reported from the Cheyenne River Basin in east-central Wyoming and basins in south-central Wyoming. It occurs on broad ridgetops, gentle slopes, and level (or slightly concave) sites with soils of clay to loam texture. Soils often have a dense subsurface horizon that impedes percolation of water. The low vegetation is composed mainly of dwarf-shrubs and grasses. The dwarf-shrub component consists of Artemisia pedatifida and, often, Krascheninnikovia lanata and small shrubs of Artemisia tridentata ssp. wyomingensis. Pascopyrum smithii dominates the herbaceous component or codominates with Koeleria macrantha or Achnatherum hymenoides. Hesperostipa comata, Elymus elymoides, Poa secunda, and Phlox hoodii often are present.
Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available
Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available
Classification Comments: Stands of vegetation with a dwarf-shrub layer dominated by Artemisia pedatifida have been described from several locations in south-central and east-central Wyoming. These stands have been divided into two associations, this type (CEGL001451) and ~Artemisia pedatifida / Elymus elymoides Shrubland (CEGL001450)$$. These two associations seem to be overlap substantially in species composition, sharing Krascheninnikovia lanata (and, less often, Bassia americana and Atriplex gardneri) in the dwarf-shrub component and Pascopyrum smithii, Elymus elymoides, Poa secunda, Achnatherum hymenoides, and Phlox hoodii in the herbaceous component. The two associations have been differentiated on the basis of relative cover of grasses; stands in which Pascopyrum smithii dominates or codominates are placed into this association, while stands where Elymus elymoides dominates are placed into the other, even though these stands may share a large number of species. It is unclear whether these differences in relative amounts of grasses represent different environments, different patterns of use, or other meaningful differences.
Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: No Data Available
Floristics: The low vegetation is composed mainly of dwarf-shrubs and grasses. The dwarf-shrub component consists of Artemisia pedatifida and, often, Krascheninnikovia lanata and small shrubs of Artemisia tridentata ssp. wyomingensis. Pascopyrum smithii dominates the herbaceous component or codominates with Koeleria macrantha or Achnatherum hymenoides. Hesperostipa comata, Elymus elymoides, Poa secunda, and Phlox hoodii often are present.
Dynamics: No Data Available
Environmental Description: It occurs on broad ridgetops, gentle slopes, and level (or slightly concave) sites with soils of clay to loam texture. Soils often have a dense subsurface horizon that impedes percolation of water.
Geographic Range: This association has been described from south-central and east-central Wyoming, but better information on Artemisia pedatifida vegetation in northern Colorado and eastern Montana may show that it has a much broader geographic range.
Nations: US
States/Provinces: WY
Plot Analysis Summary:
http://vegbank.org/natureserve/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.683911
Confidence Level: Low - Poorly Documented
Confidence Level Comments: No Data Available
Grank: G3?
Greasons: No Data Available
| Type | Name | Database Code | Classification Code |
|---|---|---|---|
| Class | 2 Shrub & Herb Vegetation Class | C02 | 2 |
| Subclass | 2.B Temperate & Boreal Grassland & Shrubland Subclass | S18 | 2.B |
| Formation | 2.B.2 Temperate Grassland & Shrubland Formation | F012 | 2.B.2 |
| Division | 2.B.2.Nb Central North American Grassland & Shrubland Division | D023 | 2.B.2.Nb |
| Macrogroup | 2.B.2.Nb.2 Needle-and-Thread - Western Wheatgrass - Plains Rough Fescue Grassland Macrogroup | M051 | 2.B.2.Nb.2 |
| Group | 2.B.2.Nb.2.b Needle-and-Thread - Blue Grama Dry Mixedgrass Prairie Group | G331 | 2.B.2.Nb.2.b |
| Alliance | A4381 None | A4381 | 2.B.2.Nb.2.b |
| Association | CEGL001451 Birdfoot Sagebrush / Western Wheatgrass Shrubland | CEGL001451 | 2.B.2.Nb.2.b |
Concept Lineage: No Data Available
Predecessors: No Data Available
Obsolete Names: No Data Available
Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: = Artemisia pedatifida (Earth Resource Technology n.d.)
= Artemisia pedatifida (Seminoe I Mine Application n.d.)
= Artemisia pedatifida Vegetation Type (Thilenius et al. 1995)
= Artemisia pedatifida (Seminoe I Mine Application n.d.)
= Artemisia pedatifida Vegetation Type (Thilenius et al. 1995)
- Bourgeron, P. S., and L. D. Engelking, editors. 1994. A preliminary vegetation classification of the western United States. Unpublished report. The Nature Conservancy, Western Heritage Task Force, Boulder, CO. 175 pp. plus appendix.
- Earth Resource Technology. No date. Vanguard II Mine Application No. 334-T2, on file at Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality, Land Quality Division, Cheyenne.
- Seminoe I Mine Application. No date. Application No. 378-T1, on file at Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality, Land Quality Division, Cheyenne, WY.
- Thilenius, J. F., G. R. Brown, and A. L. Medina. 1995. Vegetation on semi-arid rangelands, Cheyenne River Basin, Wyoming. General Technical Report RM-GTR-263. USDA Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Forest and Range Experiment Station, Fort Collins, CO. 60 pp.
- WNDD [Wyoming Natural Diversity Database]. No date. Unpublished data on file. Wyoming Natural Diversity Database, University of Wyoming, Laramie, WY.
- Western Ecology Working Group of NatureServe. No date. International Ecological Classification Standard: International Vegetation Classification. Terrestrial Vegetation. NatureServe, Boulder, CO.